The ‘Teslasuit’ is the world’s first full-body haptic smart suit that has not just stunned the AR and VR gaming enthusiasts but everyone who comes to know about it. A one of its kind, it is a brilliant technology with amazing features like Electric Muscle Stimulation (EMS), Climate control system, Motion capture, and many more. Although, it has been built with intentions to revolutionize the gaming industry. With the limits to one’s imagination Teslasuit (with no relation to Tesla Motors) could be used in various scenarios and fields such as medical/biotechnology to treat, diagnose and rehabilitate the patients; in the field of defense for creating advance soldiers and assisting them in the field; industrial areas and many more.
While the potential applications of immersive virtual reality systems and also augmented reality systems are increasing with the current market being beyond the traditional gaming sector. This new technology – Teslasuit would certainly push the boundaries even further. Today, Virtual Reality (VR) can be used for information visualization in industrial sectors. The defense sector can use virtual reality to create simulated environments to train pilots, soldiers, and crisis response teams for situations that are too dangerous to use live equipment.
About Teslasuit
The Wearable is designed to offer haptic feedback throughout one’s whole body. Teslasuit has 64 haptic points across the body that can simulate sensations from a feather-light touch to a hard punch. At the weakest end of the scale, it feels like a pleasant tingling on my skin. At the other end, it can feel like a real punch across the stomach.
Haptic feedback, or haptics, is a technology that allows the user of the haptic wearable to receive tactile information through their sensations. Teslasuit haptic feedback system is based on technologies widely used in the medical field – Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation and Electrical Muscle Stimulation. The two systems combined provide high-density accurate sensations to the wearer and add rich and versatile feedback.
Additionally, the product also offers wire-free, motion capture, and climate control, all of which are intriguing features. Being completely wire-free is also what makes it a great piece of technology. Which, as a result, broadens its horizon of possibilities of applications. Under the hood, the Teslasuit uses Electric Muscle Stimulation that causes muscle contractions through an external electrical pulse. For the wearer, it will physically make their muscles contract, which is also part of the process of providing haptic feedback when interacting with virtual objects, either through touch, holding, or by grabbing on to things. Teslasuit motion capture system uses sensors to transfer the precise position of the body into virtual environments. The full-body haptic feedback and motion capture in a thermo-controlled suit takes the wearer even deeper into a virtual world.
The Features of Teslasuit Are:
- Full body Haptic Feedback System
It provides users with a sense of touch and presence in a digital world, which is based on electrostimulation. - Climate Control System
This enables us to feel the digital environment temperature change and experience heat and cold sensations. - Motion Capture/Biometric System
Full-body motion tracking with high precision. Smart tracking of a range of body metrics. Collect the engagement metrics and biometry patterns. Coupled with machine learning opens a whole new world of possibilities. - Smart Fabrics
New technologies combined in smart fabrics make it fit the body like a second skin. It is stretchable, breathable, durable, and even washable. - Completely Wireless
‘We know what wireless means.’
The Technology Used in Teslasuit
Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS)
By including transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS or TNS/EMS) and high-precision motion tracking, Teslasuit has completely achieved the non-invasive immersion into xR, an experience of all of the body’s senses involved. Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) is the use of electric current produced by a device to stimulate the nerves. This is primarily used for therapeutic purposes, and it’s also used to improve and magnify the total immersion virtual reality experience.
Electric Muscle Stimulation (EMS)
Electric Muscle Stimulation (EMS) is the process of causing muscle contractions using an external electrical charge or pulse, usually created by an EMS machine or device. It’s different from TENS is that it makes the muscle contract.
The Teslasuit uses modular technology. The advanced haptic recreates the sensation of touch; it also simulates the feeling of the weight of objects in a virtual world.
“As this is smart clothing, it will work well for day-to-day life and well-being, for example in sports training and fitness.”
– Dimitri Mikhalchuk, Co-founder and CRO of Teslasuit.
In Conclusion
Bringing such technology to the market is not easy, primarily because it is a rather expensive venture at this time. This is especially true when it comes to full-body haptic feedback, a concept that has not been successfully explored by any manufacturer in recent years. It is very difficult to get it right and make it affordable, after all.
However, the costs associated with the technology are projected to decrease, and more industries such as automotive, manufacturing, healthcare, education, rehabilitation, and many others are expected to incorporate virtual reality and haptic technology driving such technology to grow exponentially. Within this revolution, wearable clothing is going to play a paramount role.